encore
by Serving Looks and Trash
Summary: ladybug is the pop princess taking the world by storm, known for her anonymity and powerful vocals. marinette's just a girl trying to live her life and make it to school on time once a week. no miraculous au -rated t for language-
1. Chapter 1

one

 _10._

"Ladybug, we need you on platform A right now. Got it?"

 _9._

"Dancers, get ready to go on stage in five. Let's have a good show tonight,"

 _8._

"Ladybug, do you need more track in your ear, or are you alright?"

 _7._

"Knock 'em dead, sweetheart."

 _6._

"Hair and makeup, I need you to prepare the touch-up routine,"

 _5._

"Wardrobe, we're gonna need extra help with that bodysuit again,"

 _4._

"Break a leg, doll. We'll be rooting for you back here."

 _3._

"Dancers, go, go, go!"

 _2._

"Here we go! Places, everyone! Tech crew, I need spotlights and strobes going, please and thanks!"

 _1._

 _Showtime._

The visuals came on first, projected onto two huge screens on either side of the stage. A sequined skirt sparkled brightly underneath the lighting as a figure danced around on the screen to the intro music, eliciting cheering from the crowd. Her sheer top showed off the navy bralette she wore underneath, matching the strappy heels on her feet as the camera panned around the girl. Bluebell eyes barely showed behind dark shades as she struck a number of poses onscreen. The camera began to come closer as she slowly brought her hands to her sunglasses. Just as she began to pull at the glasses, the camera cut to black, bathing the entire arena in darkness.

Marinette shifted her body into her starting pose as the platform she crouched on began to move. Rising up to the screams of thousands of fans at every concert never grew old for Ladybug. In fact, she became giddier after each one. It was a feeling like no other, knowing that all these people were there to see _her_ , that they all loved her and the music she created.

As the lights came on, she threw on her signature smile. Bright bluebell eyes stood out from underneath a crimson mask as she looked out over the crowd of fans. People were screaming her name, eyes filled with awe and wonder. A red bustier with black straps matched perfectly with black sequined hot pants, which shone brightly underneath the stage lighting. Her long black hair was tied back into a sleek braid; a pair of black over-the-knee boots elongated Ladybug's legs, giving the girl a height boost. The whole ensemble was tied together with a metallic grey raincoat that hung off one shoulder. Confidence oozed from the petite ravenette, radiating around the arena.

"How're you doing tonight Paris?"

The crowd simply roared at her question.

Then the opening notes began, and Ladybug lost herself underneath the glare of the stage lights, muscle memory remembering the steps to the choreography.

 _Boy, you know that you drive me crazy, but it's one of the things I like_

 _Cause I know when you need it, baby, that I got that, ooh ooh_

 _Let 'em keep, let 'em keep on talking, but it don't matter what they say_

 _Cause you know when you hear me knocking, gonna get that, ooh ooh_

Ladybug danced and shimmied along to the music, feeling the bass move throughout her body. The bright lights on stage made it harder for her to look farther back into the crowd, so she settled for scanning the rows closest to her for her friends.

 _I've been doing stupid things, wilder then I've ever been_

 _You've become my favorite sin, so, let 'em keep, let 'em keep on talking_

 _That's right_

A few rows back from the stage, Adrien Agreste, Alya Cesaire, and Nino Lahiffe watched in utter amazement as Ladybug strutted around on stage, dancing and singing. There was something…miraculous about the way the girl held herself onstage. It was almost as if she was untouchable; that if she stood up there, she was invincible.

 _We got that hood love, we got that good love_

 _We got that hot love, we got that I don't give a what love_

 _We got that one life, give me that all night_

 _We got that Bonnie and Clyde love, they say it's wrong, but_

 _That's the way you turn me on, we got that hood love_

 _We got that good love, make me make, bad_

 _Boy, you make me make bad decisions, bad_

 _Boy, you make me make bad decisions_

Marinette swung her body to the beat, leading the dancers behind her. The heat from the lights bore down on her as she shimmied around, and she could feel sweat beginning to form on her brow.

 _No, they ain't gonna understand it, understand what I see in you_

 _They don't know when you touch my body, that I see the truth_

 _Let 'em keep, let 'em keep on talking, 'cause I know that I got someone_

 _Anytime that I need some danger, gonna get that ooh, ooh_

She finally caught sight of her friends and sent them a radiant smile. Her eyes locked with Adrien's and she winked before flipping her hair and moving across to the other side of the stage.

 _I've been doing stupid things, wilder then I've ever been_

 _You've become my favorite sin, so, let 'em keep, let 'em keep on talking_

 _That's right_

 _We got that hood love, we got that good love_

 _We got that hot love, we got that I don't give a what love_

 _We got that one life, give me that all night_

 _We got that Bonnie and Clyde love, they say it's wrong, but_

 _That's the way you turn me on, we got that hood love_

 _We got that good love, make me make, bad_

 _Boy, you make me make bad decisions, bad_

 _Boy, you make me make bad decisions_

The bridge was her favorite part of the song for many reasons. It gave Marinette endless confidence every single time she sang it, and she felt powerful for the effect. _And then there was the fact that it drives the crowd insane,_ she thought with a smile.

 _Don't you know I ain't fucking with them good boys?_

 _Know you love me like ain't nobody here, boy_

 _If you want it, boy, you got it_

 _Ain't you ever seen a princess be a bad bitch?_

The crowd lost it. People screamed her name, and the cheering echoed loudly around her. Ladybug smirked and tossed her hair, pausing to bask in the moment before jumping right back into the final chorus of the song.

 _We got that hood love, we got that good love_

 _We got that hot love, we got that I don't give a what love_

 _We got that one life, give me that all night_

 _We got that Bonnie and Clyde love, they say it's wrong, but_

 _That's the way you turn me on, we got that hood love_

 _We got that good love, make me make, bad_

 _Boy, you make me make bad decisions_

 _Bad boy, you make me make bad decisions_

 _Bad boy, you make me make bad decisions_

 _Bad boy, you make me make bad decisions_

The arena was deafeningly loud as the song finished. So loud, in fact, that it took a few minutes for everything to settle down to the point where she could speak, and even then it was hard to say anything above all the noise.

"Paris! I love you so, so much!" She exclaimed excitedly into her glittering microphone, prompting another round of cheering and yelling from her supportive fans. "To know that my home city is behind me and supporting my success one hundred percent is so incredible to me and I love you all so fucking much!" She smiled grandly, gesturing widely with outstretched arms. Her face filled the big screens on either side of the stage as a camera followed below.

"That was my latest single from my brand new album, _Lucky Charm_. I hope you really love it as much as I do, because I have a special announcement for you guys tonight!" At this, she paused, and winked at the crowd sending them into another fit of whistles and screams.

"Buuut"—she smirked playfully, holding up a finger—"I have one more song before I tell you all what that secret is. Now, I want everybody to get out your flashlights and lighters, because this next song needs a lil' bit of a night-sky-type of effect."

Thousands of bright little lights soon filled the otherwise pitch-black arena, giving a beautiful glow to the venue and the singer who stood on the stage, taking it all in.

"All right everyone. This next song is from my debut album, _Miss Fortune_. If you know the words, please sing along." With that she strode down to a set of stairs placed on the stage, sitting down gently. "This is _Good Enough_. I hope you like it."

As the lights dimmed down and the piano started up softly, Marinette lost herself in the music.

 _I am the diamond you left in the dust_

 _I am the future you lost in the past_

 _Seems like I never compared_

 _Wouldn't notice if I disappeared_

Ladybug felt the emotion building up within her. The song meant so much to her, both as Ladybug and Marinette. She was generally a confident person who knew her self-worth, but there were days where she doubted herself on both sides of the mask.

 _You stole the love that I saved for myself_

 _And I watched you give it to somebody else_

 _But these scars no longer I hide_

 _I found the light you shut inside_

 _Couldn't love me if you tried_

Marinette poured her heart and soul into every lyric, with as much passion and emotion as she could muster.

 _Am I still not good enough?_

 _Am I still not worth that much?_

 _I'm sorry for the way my life turned out,_

 _Sorry for the smile I'm wearing now,_

 _Guess I'm still not good enough_

The more intense feelings came to light and she threw herself deeper into the lyrics, trying to blink back the tears that began to prick at the corner of her eyes.

 _Does it burn, knowing I used all the pain?_

 _Does it hurt, knowing you're fuel to my flame?_

 _Don't look back, don't need your regrets_

 _Thank god you left my love behind_

 _Couldn't change me if you tried_

Her mind was on overdrive as she serenaded the crowd in front of her. Every insecure thought was at the front of her mind, overwhelming her.

 _Am I still not good enough?_

 _Am I still not worth that much?_

 _I'm sorry for the way my life turned out,_

 _Sorry for the smile I'm wearing now,_

 _Guess I'm still not good enough_

Adrien watched the singer from the crowd, mesmerized as she effortlessly nailed every single note. As she entered the bridge, it was then that he noticed. Ladybug was crying. The girl was falling apart on stage, tears in her eyes.

 _Release your curse, cause I know my worth_

 _Those wounds you made are gone_

 _You ain't seen nothing yet_

 _Your love wore thin, and I never win_

 _You want the best, so sorry that's clearly not me_

 _This is all I can be_

Marinette could feel hot, salty tears falling behind her closed eyes as she sang with everything she had in her. Her voice died and not trusting herself, pointed the microphone towards the crowd and smiled weakly, tears blurring her vision as she listened to them sing to her.

 _Am I still not good enough?_

 _Am I still not worth that much?_

 _I'm sorry for the way my life turned out,_

 _Sorry for the smile I'm wearing now_

 _Guess I'm still not good enough_

As soon as the song finished, Ladybug dropped her microphone and ran off the stage.


	2. Chapter 2

"Girl, you should've seen it! Ladybug ran off the stage right in the middle of the concert and didn't come back for like, fifteen minutes. We all thought she was gonna cancel the whole thing, but then she came back onstage. Ugh, it was insane!" Alya gushed to Marinette. The two sat on the latter's bedroom floor, talking about the Ladybug concert the previous night.

Marinette winced internally. To say last night had been rough was an understatement. After running off stage Marinette collapsed into a pile of tears on the floor. Her heart had hurt so much, and she didn't know why. All she knew was that Tikki and Plagg somehow managed to convince her to do an outfit change, play the interlude, and finish the concert. The meet and greet after had been rescheduled for the next night at Mayor Bourgeois' hotel.

"—arinette. Marinette!" Alya's voice brought her back from thought. "Were you even listening to me?" The girl shook her head at her friend. Alya sighed, smiling fondly. "I was just saying that you could totally tell that she had been crying. It was so weird, you know? Like she's supposed to be untouchable, but something had her really messed up last night. You know,—" she leaned in closer to Marinette, whispering loudly—"I bet that she has a secret boyfriend that nobody knows about and they broke up last night before the show. That would explain a lot, right?"

Marinette rolled her eyes at her. While she was used to Alya's wild theories that she conjured up while trying to figure out Ladybug's true identity, this one truly took the cake. "Alya," she began, "maybe she just got emotional singing the song. _Thinking 'bout you_ is pretty intense, after all. Maybe she just got caught up in the moment or something. That happens all the time with other singers."

Alya's eyes snapped back to study hers curiously. "How did you know she cried during _Thinking 'bout you_?"

Whoops. Marinette hadn't been at the concert last night, only Ladybug had. Marinette had been busy 'babysitting' for Nadja Chamack again ("The eighth time this month!" Alya had pointed out) so she couldn't have gone. How was she going to explain this one?

"Well, uh—I saw a video online! Yeah, on your blog! I remember seeing somebody submitted one so I watched it, and boy, did it look rough. Poor Ladybug," Marinette lied, stumbling over her words. She prayed Alya would believe her lame excuse.

"Bullshit."

Marinette blanched. _Alrighty then._

She didn't believe her. And now Marinette was making a bigger mess than she really had ever needed to. Opening her mouth, she fought to find her voice, to say something, to say _anything_ , when Alya suddenly laughed.

"Daaamn, girl! I got you good!" she snickered as she looked at her friend's terrified face. After a moment Marinette recovered, giggling along with her. _That was close,_ she thought. _Too close._

As much as Marinette loved Alya and trusted her with her life, there were some things that she needed to keep to herself. Like the fact that she led a double life as a pop star that only her parents knew about. Or that she was currently finishing her summer concert tour just in time to promote her upcoming album, _Lucky Charm_.

Add to that going into junior year in lycée and having to keep up with schoolwork, as well as the occasional public appearance on a radio show or just out in general, meant there usually was little downtime for Marinette to breathe.

Since she swore herself to secrecy to keep her identity safe, Marinette couldn't tell Alya anything about her double life at all. She supposed it was better off that way, but there were those times where Marinette wished she could let Alya in and tell her everything. She wanted to be able to come home and just rant to somebody who wasn't her parents. She wanted to have Alya there in the studio with her when she wrote songs or recorded an album. She wanted Alya to be there by her side, backstage with her at every concert, cheering her on.

But she couldn't. No matter how much she wanted it to happen, it just couldn't. Tikki and Plagg had explained it all to Marinette when she first signed to Kwami Records.

" _Marinette, if anybody finds out your true identity, it could be catastrophic," Tikki stated. The petite woman sat next to Marinette in her office, a contract on the table. Plagg sat across from the two, nodding at her words._

" _Look, kid," he said seriously, "anybody can turn on you in this industry. Don't share your identity with anyone because if that gets leaked, you can kiss any hope of a normal life good-bye instantly."_

" _That's right," Tikki agreed. "The press will have a field day, and you'll be forced to admit it. Marinette, the only people who can know are the ones you can trust with your life. Got that?"_

 _Marinette nodded. This was all so new to her—recording albums, singles, contracts, record labels. All she knew was that she wanted to make people feel something when they listened to her music. She wanted to make people happy._

"—and that's when I decided that, hey, I should just shut down the Ladyblog and elope to Switzerland with Nino. Girl, are you even listening to me anymore?"

"Huh? Oh, sorry," Marinette replied, dazed. "I was up super late last night working on a dress that I really needed to embroider. You know, me and my stupid work ethic!" She laughed weakly, trying to recover.

Alya raised a brow at her.

"You said you had to babysit last night for Nadja Chamack again. Remember?"

 _Shit shit shit._ A flash of panic darted across the ravenette's features. Marinette was going to have to think fast to get out of this one.

"Well, um I—uh, I, um—well, you see Nadja wasn't able to pick Ma—"

"Marinette."

"—non up from my house so I just decided that I should just—"

"Mar."

"—work on a couple of sketches before I had to walk her back—"

"M."

"—to her house and then by the time I got back to _my_ house I—"

"Marinette!" Alya shouted. That got her attention. "You weren't babysitting last night, were you?"

Her eyes went wide. "No, honest Alya, I was! Why would I tell you that I was if I wasn't?"

Her friend sighed. "M, it's not that hard to figure out. Nadja and Manon are on vacation in Italy, remember? You told me that yourself two weeks ago that they'd be gone for a week and a half so we could go to the Ladybug concert together."

This was not looking good.

She continued on. "I don't know what's going on with you, Mar. You lied to me the other times you had to babysit too, because when I called your house, you never answered the phone. And I know for a fact that you _rarely_ leave the house when you babysit, especially at night."

Scratch that. Alya was on to her. _Fuck._

Marinette didn't know what to do. She listened as Alya kept going, pointing out every single lie Marinette had told her all summer. All the color drained from her face as Alya crept one step closer to revealing her secret.

"Look, M. I don't have any idea what's going on in your life right now. I barely get to see you anymore, because you always make these excuses why you can't hang out with me anymore. Do you not like me? Because I need to know what I'm doing wrong." Alya finished sadly.

"Alya—I wish I could tell you, I really do." Marinette couldn't tell her; what would happen then? She could see it now: the front pages of newspapers and tabloids, every headline reading **LADYBUG'S IDENTITY REVEALED** or **BUG UNMASKED!** She shuddered at the thought of so much attention. Sure she was used to the stage, but to be alone in public and _unmasked_ for the very first time was downright terrifying.

"Why not, Marinette? Why can't you tell me?" Alya was not backing down. She wanted answers, and she wanted them _now_.

"Why don't you tell me anything anymore? Why can't you ever return my calls or texts? Why do you go missing for days at a time from school, but never bother to tell me where you go or what you're doing? Why do you refuse to tell me anything? Why do you lie to my face and keep me in the dark? Why do you not—"

"Alya, I'm—"

"Oh my god. You're dying." Alya rushed forwards and hugged her tightly. Tears started falling down her face.

"Alya, I'm not dying."

"Oh." The redhead released her, returning to her previous perch on the floor. She adjusted her glasses and wiped away more tears that threatened to fall.

"But there is something I want you to know," Marinette said softly, looking at the floor.

Did she want to do this? Of course. She'd wanted to since the very beginning of her career, before the fame and the tour and the money. At the very least, she owed it to Alya for putting up with her lame lies. She took a deep breath and gathered the last of her courage. _Please don't hate me._

"I'm Ladybug."

"Holy shit."


End file.
